


It Feels Like Home

by Stormblessed111



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety, Fluffy Ending, Gen, Panic Attacks, Parent-Child Relationship, Parental Moxiety - Freeform, Self-Depricating Thoughts, good dad pat, hes like 8 i think, virgil is a kiddo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-06
Updated: 2018-11-06
Packaged: 2019-08-19 22:00:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16543082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stormblessed111/pseuds/Stormblessed111
Summary: Virgil thinks he has no chance of being adopted. After all, he's only worth 100 points, where some children are well into the thousands. No parent is going to waste their points on him, right?





	It Feels Like Home

**Author's Note:**

> I found a post from @writing-prompt-s on tumblr that really inspired me, and of course I have to make it Sanders Sides. The prompt was: “Couples receive “parent points”, which they can use to purchase their children. Most parents wait for a few thousand, but you chose to buy the cheaper, 100 point child.”  
> There’s a much better story by caffinewitchcraft on that post, but I wrote this little thing anyway. I’m not a writer, so please be gentle with me?
> 
> (Please tell me if I need other warnings for this, or if you spot any grammatical errors, or if you have literally anything else to say! I definitely welcome constructive feedback!)

Virgil. The 100 point child that no one would choose because of his severe panic attacks. The child that hopes and prays for a home but can’t fight the shaking and hyperventilating that washes over him whenever a stranger is near. The child that has seen countless adopters walk away with expressions of wariness and pity because they don’t know what to make of him, how to deal with him. The child that blames himself for being unlovable, unwanted.

Every day, he watches from the playroom at the adoption center as people come in and out. Kids leave with their new parents. He’s seen hundreds of them pass through. And he’s still here. Waiting.

And then something happens. A man comes in one day, a man with an infectious smile and a laugh that fills you with warmth. The staff seem amiable enough towards him, but they don’t trip over themselves to please him like they would a high buyer. Virgil has seen this scenario play out a million times before; the man will go right to the thousands, probably without even sparing a glance into this room. Why even look at the broken kids when you can afford better, right? As he turns away from the door, Virgil feels the same ache in his chest that he has all his life. He will never be good enough.

The child loses himself in his sorrowful thoughts. So much that he doesn’t realize the man has come into the playroom and walked up behind him.

“Hi, I’m Patton. What’s your name?”

Virgil jumps and twists around with a screech. His heart jumps to his throat and the air around him is suddenly gone. The child scrambles into the corner clutching his chest and gasping fruitlessly, tears suddenly streaming down his face.

The man - Patton - looks startled for a moment but his expression quickly changes to a soft, open, friendly smile. He moves slowly to sit on the ground, far enough from Virgil that he could run if he wanted to. Patton crosses his legs and holds his palms up in a non-threatening gesture.

“Hey, its alright kiddo, I’m not gonna hurt you.”

Virgil’s eyes dart around, flickering from the man in front of him, to the door, then back to the man. The boy’s breath comes in harsh pulls.

“Is it okay if I sit here?” Patton speaks quietly. Virgil glances at the door one more time, but then turns back to Patton and nods shakily.

“I just wanted to talk, but it’s just fine if you don’t want to. Okay?” Virgil nods his head again. Panicked thoughts are racing through his mind, but he stays where he is.

“Kiddo? Can you do something for me? Can you take a deep breath with me as I count to four?”

The odd request brings Virgil’s mind to a halt. What is this guy doing? He’d already been here longer than any other adult had who witnessed Virgil’s attacks. They always left him to be handled by the staff while they tried to find a child who wouldn’t cry from just meeting them. But here he is, sitting and smiling like nothing is wrong. Like Virgil isn’t wrong. He likes Patton. He wants Patton to like him, too. So he tries.

“1…2…”

Patton starts counting, lightly tapping his hand in time. Virgil tries to suck air into his lungs, but he can’t even get to three. He looks Patton right in the eye, silently apologizing and pleading to him. I’m sorry I can’t do anything right, I’m sorry, please don’t leave.

“Thats alright, we can try again. Ready? 1… 2….3… You’re doing great kiddo. One more time? 1…2…3…4. Amazing job. Now, after I count to four, can you try to hold your breath while I count to seven? Yeah?”

Virgil nods again and his focus is entirely on Patton’s words, and watching his hand tap the ground. He doesn’t feel like he’s going to die anymore.

“Here we go. 1…2…3…4. Now hold 1..2..3..4..5.. Almost! Lets try again…”

The two sit facing each other, counting and breathing. Once Virgil can make it to seven, Patton asks him to breathe out until eight. It takes a few minutes, but the boy can finally feel his chest lightening. All the while, Patton keeps up a steady stream of encouragement, never once getting angry or impatient with him.

“You feel a little better now?”

Virgil takes in a deep breath. “…Y-yeah.”

“That’s great. You did so well. I think you deserve a Patt-on the back kiddo!” The man grinned brightly at his joke, and Virgil decided right then that he felt safe. For the first time since he could remember, he wasn’t scared of this new person.

“…Virgil.”

“Hm?”

“You asked what my name is. It’s Virgil.” The boy looks down at the ground. His hands fiddle with the bottom of his too-big tshirt as he waits for a reaction. When none comes after a long moment, he glances back up. Patton looks right into his eyes with a solemn expression that worries Virgil for a second until the man speaks.

“Virgil, I have a very important question for you. You don’t have to answer right away. But I was wondering… if you wanted to come home with me.”

What?

His mind goes blank as Virgil tries to process the words he just heard. The words that play through his mind every night as he falls asleep. The words he thought he would never hear. He wants… me?

“I think you’re an amazing, brave little boy Virgil. I would love for you to be part of my family. You don’t have to decide now, but-”

“Yes.”

The word is almost too quiet to hear. Hope is radiating from Virgil, and new tears stream down his cheeks. The boy crawls closer to Patton, uncertainty in every movement, until he’s right in front of him. They both hold their breath.

Then Patton slowly opens his arms and Virgil launches into them, sobbing as the man encloses him in the warmest, most loving hug Virgil has ever felt. It feels like home.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, I hope you liked it! Leave a comment if you want <3 My tumblr is @stormblessedcastiel , it's almost exclusively sanders sides and I have some drawings posted there! Feel free to take a look, and have a wonderful day


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